Mark Henry
| birth_place = Silsbee, Texas | death_date = | death_place = | resides = Silsbee,Texas | billed = Silsbee, Texas | trainer = Leo Burke Tom Prichard | debut = September 22, 1996 | retired =2018 }} Mark Jerrold Henry (June 12, 1971) is a Retired American professional wrestler currently signed to the WWE as a producer. Aside from wrestling, he is a 1996 Olympian, and winner of the 2002 Arnold Strongman Classic. Since joining the WWF/E in 1996, he has become a one-time WWE European Champion and a two-time world champion, having held the ECW Championship in 2008 and the World Heavyweight Championship in 2011. Before becoming a professional wrestler, Henry was a weightlifter, and competed at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain, where he placed tenth in the super heavyweight division. Three years later, at the 1995 Pan American Games, Henry won a gold medal in the super heavyweight division. The following year, he became a North America, Central America, Caribbean Islands (NACACI) champion. In 1996, Henry was sponsored by the World Wrestling Federation at the 1996 Summer Olympics and was signed to a ten-year contract in professional wrestling. Henry was trained by former Canadian professional wrestlers Stu and Bret Hart and Leo Burke. He made his television wrestling debut match in September 1996. Two years later, Henry joined the stable Nation of Domination. After the disbandment of the group, he acquired the moniker "Sexual Chocolate", which led him to participate in controversial angles. In 2000, Henry was sent to the company's developmental territory Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW) in Louisville, Kentucky to improve his wrestling skills. That same year, he left wrestling and began focusing on weightlifting. Henry won a strongman competition, during the Arnold Classic in 2002. In 2003, Henry returned to WWE, where he took part of the group "Thuggin' And Buggin' Enterprises", a group compiled of African Americans who worked a race angle in which they felt they were victims of racism and were being held down by the "white man". The following year, Henry tore his quadriceps muscle, and was unable to compete for over a year. Upon his return, he was briefly involved in feuds with Kurt Angle and The Undertaker, before suffering a knee injury. After it healed, he continued to feud with The Undertaker, before being moved to the ECW brand in June 2008, where he gained Tony Atlas as a manager. In June 2008, he won the ECW Championship and he held it for three months. He was traded to the Raw brand in June 2009.He still occasionally has matches but has more of an off screen role now . He was a Texas state Champion in powerlifting and held the national powerlifting record until Andrew Billings the Baylor University Bears football player broke the record in 2013. Weightlifting career During his time in high school, Henry was a three-time state champion with state records in the squat at 832 lb (377 kg), bench press at 525 lb (238 kg) and deadlift at 815 lb (370 kg). At the Texas high school powerlifting championships in April 1990, Terry Todd, a professor of kinesiology at the University of Texas at Austin and former weightlifter, spotted Henry and persuaded him to go to Austin after he graduated to train in the Olympic style of weightlifting. Henry broke four national junior records in weightlifting after eight months of training in Olympic style weightlifting. In April 1991, he placed fourth at the United States Nationals, and finished sixth at the World Junior Weightlifting Championships in Germany two months later. In Henry's first year of competing, he broke the three junior (20 and under) American records 12 times, and became the United States' top superheavyweight, surpassing Mario Martinez. Henry was billed as the "World's Strongest Man" after he qualified for the weightlifting competition at the 1992 Summer Olympics, where he finished tenth in the super heavyweight class. Ten months before the 1992 Olympics, Henry had begun training with Dragomir Cioroslan, a bronze medalist at the 1984 Summer Olympics, who said that he had "never seen anyone with Mark's raw talent". At the 1995 Pan American Games Henry won a gold, silver and bronze medal, and a year later, he became a North America, Central America, Caribbean Islands (NACACI) champion. He also participated in the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, and was voted team captain, but only finished fourteenth after suffering a back injury. Professional wrestling career World Wrestling Federation / Entertainment /WWE (1996-present) Debut (1996) After the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) sponsored Henry in the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, he was signed to a ten-year contract. Trained by professional wrestler Leo Burke, his first feud in the WWF was with Jerry Lawler who had some harsh words for Henry on an episode of Monday Night Raw in March. At the pay-per-view event, SummerSlam in August 1996, Henry came to the aid of Jake Roberts who was suffering indignity at the hands of Lawler. His first television wrestling match was at In Your House: Mind Games on September 22, 1996, where he defeated Lawler. Nation of Domination and Sexual Chocolate (1998–2002) Henry joined the Nation of Domination faction after he brutally attacked his tag team partner Ken Shamrock (the worlds most dangerous man) with Farooq, The Rock, The Godfather and D'Lo Brown on January 12, 1998, becoming a villain in the process. After The Rock usurped Farooq's position as leader, Henry switched loyalties to The Rock. He also competed at WrestleMania XIV in a tag team battle royal, with Brown as his partner, but they did not win. After the Nation disbanded, he engaged in a short feud with The Rock, defeating him at Judgment Day: In Your House with help from Brown, and then forming a permanent team with Brown, gaining Ivory as a manager. During the next year, Henry gave himself the nickname "Sexual Chocolate", and was involved in controversial angles with Chyna and a transvestite. During a match at the August 1999 pay-per-view, SummerSlam, between Brown and Jeff Jarrett for the WWF Intercontinental and WWF European Championships (both held at the time by Brown), Henry turned on Brown and helped Jarrett win the match and the titles. The next night, Henry was awarded the European title by Jarrett in return for his help. Henry dropped the title one month later to Brown at the Unforgiven pay-per-view. After this, Henry turned into a fan favorite, and was seen on television romancing WWF women from Chyna to Mae Young as part of the "Sexual Chocolate" character. He feuded with Viscera during this time as part of a storyline where Viscera splashed Mae Young while she was carrying Henry's child. Young would go on to give birth to a hand. Along with this, Henry was made part of various other embarrassing and infamous storylines, including the admission that he was a sex addict. In 2000, Henry was sent to Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW) to improve his conditioning and skills. In OVW, Henry teamed with Nick Dinsmore to compete in a tournament for the OVW Southern Tag Team Championship in mid-2001. Later that year, he went on hiatus from wrestling to concentrate on weightlifting, and on February 23, 2002, he won a strongman competition, during the Arnold Classic in Columbus, Ohio, claiming a $75,000 Humvee as his prize. SmackDown! and Raw (2002–2004) Henry returned to the WWF the next month and was sent to the SmackDown! brand, where he developed an in-ring persona of performing "tests of strength" while other wrestlers took bets on the tests, but the gimmick met with little success. During this time he competed against such superstars as Chris Jericho and Christian. After being used sporadically on WWE (formerly WWF) television during 2002, as he was training for a weightlifting contest, and suffering a knee injury, Henry was sent back to OVW for more training. In August 2003, Henry returned to WWE television on the Raw roster, where he found some success as a member of "Thuggin' And Buggin' Enterprises," a group of African Americans led by Theodore Long who worked a race angle in which they felt they were victims of racism and were being held down by the "white man". During that time, Henry was involved in a brief program with World Heavyweight Champion Goldberg when former champion, Triple H, put a bounty on Goldberg. This was followed by a brief rivalry with Shawn Michaels, before he engaged in a scripted rivalry with Booker T. After defeating Booker T twice, once in a street fight and once in a six-man tag team match, he lost to Booker T at the Armageddon pay-per-view in December 2003. At a practice session in OVW in February 2004, Henry tore his quadriceps muscle, and was out for over a year after undergoing surgery. Henry was then utilized by WWE as a public relations figure during his recovery, before returning to OVW to finish out 2005. Return and various feuds (2005–2008) During the [[December 30, 2005 Smackdown results|December 30 episode of SmackDown!]], Henry made his return to television, as he interfered in a WWE Tag Team Championship match, joining with MNM (Joey Mercury, Johnny Nitro, and Melina), to help them defeat Rey Mysterio and Batista for the championship. A week later on SmackDown!, Henry got in a confrontation with the World Heavyweight Champion, Batista, and went on to interfere in a steel cage match between MNM and the team of Mysterio and Batista, helping MNM to retain their titles. Henry then had another match with Batista at a live event where Batista received a severely torn triceps that required surgery, forcing him to vacate his title. On the [[January 13, 2006 Smackdown results|January 13, 2006 episode of SmackDown!]], Henry was involved in a battle royal for the vacant World Heavyweight Championship. He was finally tossed out by Kurt Angle, who won the title. A week later, Henry received assistance from Daivari, who turned on Angle and announced that he was the manager of Henry. With Daivari at his side, Henry would face Kurt Angle for the World Heavyweight title at the 2006 Royal Rumble in January, which he lost when Angle hit him with a chair (without the referee seeing) and pinned Henry with a roll-up. On the [[March 10, 2006 Smackdown results|March 10 episode of SmackDown!]], after putting Kurt Angle through a table with a diving splash, Henry was then challenged to a casket match by The Undertaker at WrestleMania 22. Henry vowed to defeat The Undertaker and end his streak at WrestleMania, but was unsuccessful in this quest as The Undertaker would defeat Henry at the event. Henry would get a rematch against the Undertaker on the [[April 7, 2006 Smackdown results|April 7 episode of SmackDown!]], however it ended in a no contest when Daivari announced his new client, The Great Khali, who was also making his debut. Khali then went to the ring and started to attack the Undertaker, thus ending the feud between them. During the rest of April and May, Henry gained a pinfall victory over the World Heavyweight Champion, Rey Mysterio in a non-title match. Henry would also enter the King of the Ring tournament, in which he was defeated by Bobby Lashley in the first round. He later cost Kurt Angle his World Heavyweight Championship opportunity against Mysterio, when he jumped off the top rope and crushed Angle through a table. Henry was then challenged by Angle to face off at Judgment Day, Henry then sent a "message" to Angle by defeating Paul Burchill. At Judgment Day, Henry defeated Angle by countout. Although winning, Angle got his revenge after the match by hitting Henry with a chair and putting him through a table. Henry later went on what was referred to as a "path of destruction", causing injuries to numerous superstars. Henry "took out" Chris Benoit and Paul Burchill on this path of destruction, and attacked Rey Mysterio and Chavo Guerrero. These events led up to a feud with the returning Batista, whom Henry had put out of action with a legitimate injury several months beforehand. When Batista returned he and Henry were scheduled to face one another at The Great American Bash in July. Weeks before that event, however, on the July 15, 2006 edition of Saturday Night's Main Event, Henry was involved in a six-man tag team match with King Booker and Finlay against Batista, Rey Mysterio, and Bobby Lashley. During the match, Henry was injured, canceling the scheduled match at The Great American Bash, as Henry needed surgery. Doctors later found that Henry completely tore his patella tendon off the bone and split his patella completely in two. Henry returned on the [[May 11, 2007 Smackdown results|May 11, 2007 episode of SmackDown!]], after weeks of vignettes hyping his return. He attacked The Undertaker after a World Heavyweight Championship steel cage match with Batista, allowing Edge to take advantage of the situation and use his Money in the Bank contract. Henry then began a short feud with Kane, defeating him in a Lumberjack Match at One Night Stand. Shortly after, Henry made an open challenge to the SmackDown! locker room, which nobody ever accepted. In the coming weeks he faced various jobbers—wrestlers who consistently lose to make their opponents look stronger—and quickly defeated them all. On August 3, he claimed that nobody accepted the open challenge to step into the ring with him because of what he had done to The Undertaker, presenting footage of his assault on the Undertaker. The Undertaker responded over the following weeks, playing various mind games with Henry. Henry finally faced The Undertaker again at Unforgiven in September, losing to him after being given a Last Ride. Two weeks later, Henry lost a rematch to The Undertaker after The Undertaker performed a chokeslam on Henry. After a short hiatus, Henry returned to WWE programming on the October 23 episode of ECW, attacking Kane, along with The Great Khali and Big Daddy V. Henry then began teaming with Big Daddy V against Kane and CM Punk, and was briefly managed by Big Daddy V's manager, Matt Striker. At Armageddon, Henry and Big Daddy V defeated Kane and Punk. Before WrestleMania XXIV aired, Henry participated in a 24-man battle royal to determine the number one contender for the ECW Championship, but failed to win. ECW (2008–2009) As part of the 2008 WWE Supplemental Draft, Henry was drafted to the ECW brand. At Night of Champions, Henry defeated Kane and Big Show in a Triple Threat match to capture the ECW Championship in his debut match as an ECW superstar. Upon winning the title, it was made exclusive to the ECW brand once again. Henry's title win came nearly a full decade after he was awarded the European Championship, which was back in 1999 and the last title he held in WWE. A few weeks later, Hall of Famer Tony Atlas returned to WWE to act as Henry's manager. A month after Henry's title win, ECW General Manager, Theodore Long, unveiled a new, entirely platinum ECW Championship belt design. Henry would lose the title at Unforgiven in the Championship Scramble match to Matt Hardy. Henry attempted to regain the championship throughout the end of 2008, including a match against Hardy at No Mercy, but was unsuccessful. Henry and Atlas then engaged in a scripted rivalry against Finlay and Hornswoggle, which included Henry losing a Belfast Brawl at Armageddon. At the start of 2009, Henry qualified for the Money in the Bank ladder match at WrestleMania XXV, and was involved in a series of matches with the other competitors on Raw, SmackDown, and ECW. He was unsuccessful at WrestleMania, however, as CM Punk won the match. In May, Henry began a scripted rivalry with Evan Bourne, which began after Bourne defeated Henry by countout on the [[May 26, 2009 ECW results|May 26 episode of ECW]]. Return to Raw and face turn (2009-2011) On June 29, Henry was traded to the Raw brand, and made his redebut for the brand that night as the third opponent in a three-on-one gauntlet match against Randy Orton, which he won, turning Henry into a fan favorite in the process. In August 2009, Henry formed a tag team with Montel Vontavious Porter, and the two challenged the Unified WWE Tag Team Champions Chris Jericho and The Big Show for the titles at Breaking Point, but were unsuccessful. They stopped teaming afterwards, becoming involved in separate storylines, until the [[February 15, 2010 Monday Night RAW results|February 15, 2010 episode of Raw]] in which they defeated the Unified WWE Tag Team Champions The Big Show and The Miz in a non-title match. The next week they got a title match but were unsuccessful. At Extreme Rules, Henry and MVP fought for a chance to become number one contenders to the Unified WWE Tag Team Championships, but were the second team eliminated in a gauntlet match by The Big Show and The Miz. The match would be won by The Hart Dynasty (Tyson Kidd and David Hart Smith). On June 1, Henry was announced as the mentor of Lucky Cannon for the second season of WWE NXT. Cannon was eliminated on the [[August 10, 2010 NXT results|August 10 episode of NXT]]. In September, Henry began teaming with Evan Bourne, starting at the Night of Champions pay-per-view, where they entered a Tag Team Turmoil for the Unified WWE Tag Team Championship. They made it to the final two teams, but were defeated by Cody Rhodes and Drew McIntyre. The team came to an end in October when Bourne suffered an injury and was taken out of action. Henry then formed a team with Yoshi Tatsu on the [[November 29, 2010 Monday Night RAW results|November 29 episode of Raw]], defeating WWE Tag Team Champions Justin Gabriel and Heath Slater, after a distraction by John Cena. They received a shot at the titles the next week, in a Fatal-4-Way Elimination Tag Team match, which also included The Usos and Santino Marella and Vladimir Kozlov. Henry and Tatsu were the first team eliminated in the match. On the April 11 edition of Raw, Henry joined a group called The Apple, created by Santino Marella, consisting of fellow superstars Marella, Daniel Bryan, and Evan Bourne to take on The Corre in an 8-man tag team match which they lost. World Heavyweight Champion, Heel Turn and Hall of Pain (2011–2013) On April 25, 2011, Mark Henry returned to the SmackDown brand as part of the 2011 WWE Draft. In the main event of the night, Henry attacked his teammates, John Cena and Christian, turning into a heel for the first time since June 2009. On May 27, Henry participated in a triple threat match against Sheamus and Christian to determine the number one contender for Randy Orton's World Heavyweight Championship, which was ultimately won by Sheamus. Henry then began feuding with The Big Show, attacking him before matches and backstage. On the [[July 1, 2011 Smackdown results|July 1 edition of SmackDown]], if Henry defeated Randy Orton, he would receive a World Heavyweight Championship match in the near future, however Orton defeated Henry via countout after being distracted by Show's entrance theme and music. As a consequence, Henry destroyed the production set. Henry would defeat Big Show at Money in the Bank. Henry would then assault Big Show with a steel chair, injuring him. On the SmackDown following the pay-per-view, Henry would do the same thing to Kane, who competed in a match against Randy Orton moments before. Over the next few weeks, Henry would demand competition, and, after defeating local wrestler Bobby Howard on the [[July 29, 2011 Smackdown results|July 29 edition of SmackDown]], General Manager Theodore Long would announce to Henry he could no longer compete as no one wants to fight him. Sheamus would interrupt Long, telling him he isn't afaird of Henry, and, while face to face with Henry, slapped him. Henry would defeat Sheamus at SummerSlam by count-out. On the [[August 19, 2011 Smackdown results|August 19 edition of SmackDown]], Henry won a 20-man battle royal to become number one contender to the World Heavyweight Championship. A week later, guest SmackDown General Manager of the night, Bret Hart, placed Henry in a rematch with Sheamus, which resulted in Sheamus winning by count-out. After the match, Henry would deliver his World's Strongest Slam finisher to Sheamus onto the steel steps. At Night of Champions, Henry defeated Randy Orton for the World Heavyweight Championship. On the [[September 26, 2011 Monday Night RAW results|September 26 episode of Raw]], Henry was set to face The Great Khali, but before the match, Henry would use the World Heavyweight title to attack Khali, before hitting him with the World's Strongest Slam. Henry and Khali would fight again on that [[September 30, 2011 Smackdown results|week's edition of SmackDown]], where Henry was successful. After the match, Henry would crush Khali's foot with a chair, (kayfabe) injuring him.[91] Henry successfully defended the title against Orton at WWE Hell in a Cell in a Hell in a Cell match.[92] On the [[October 7, 2011 Smackdown results|October 7th edition of Smackdown]], when Big Show returned to Smackdown, Henry declared that Big Show would never get a chance to get the World Heavyweight Championship. Big Show then proceeded to attack Henry and chokeslam him through a table. Big Show attempted to injure Mark Henry's leg, however Teddy Long stopped the assault and gave him a title shot against Mark Henry at Vengeance. In this heated match, Henry would go on to superplex the Big Show from the top rope. The ring collapsed under their combined weight, and with the both of them on the mat for a significant amount of time, similar to when Brock Lesnar superplexed Big Show off the top rope, the ref called for medics and trainers. The match resulted in a No Contest.[93] On the [[October 31, 2011 Monday Night RAW results|October 31 episode of Raw]], Henry defeated CM Punk by disqualification after then-WWE Champion Alberto Del Rio sent his announcer Ricardo Rodriguez into the ring and attacked Henry.[94] Henry then began a feud with Daniel Bryan after seeing him look at him the wrong way while being interviewed. Mark Henry would defeat Bryan by diqualification that night after being attacked by Big Show. Teddy Long announced that Henry will face The Big Show at Survivor Series for the World Heavyweight Championship. On the November 14 episode of Raw, Henry and Alberto Del Rio defeated CM Punk and Big Show.[95] On the [[November 18, 2011 Smackdown results|November 18 episode of SmackDown]], Henry promised that Big Show will be carried out of Survivor Series by paramedics and he would leave still the World Heavyweight Champion, after he severely assaulting Bryan.[96] At the 25th anniversary of Survivor Series, Henry retained the World Heavyweight Championship against Big Show after a low blow that disqualified Henry. Angered by Henry's cowardice Big Show smashed Henry's ankle with a steel chair. The following SmackDown, Henry was attacked by The Big Show with a W.M.D after Henry insulted Big Show. Daniel Bryan would immediately race out to cash in his Money in The Bank briefcase on an unconscious Henry, where he pinned him but Theodore Long rushed out to the ring to tell Bryan the match was not legal due to the fact that Henry was not medically cleared to compete.[97] Later that night, Bryan won a Fatal-Four Way match to face Henry for the World Heavyweight Championship in a steel cage, though Henry would go later on to win that match on the live holiday edition of Super SmackDown. Henry would defeat Bryan after being attacked in his injured leg but came out on top with a "World's Strongest Slam" from the top rope and retained the World Heavyweight Championship though there were many phenomenal attempts by Bryan to exit the cage. [98] On the 5th December edition of Raw, it was announced that Henry will face Big Show at TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs 2011 for the World Heavyweight Championship in a chairs match.[99] On the same night, Henry lost a no disqualification match against Zack Ryder after interference from John Cena which earned Ryder a United States Championship match against Dolph Ziggler at TLC.[100] On the [[December 9, 2011 Smackdown results|December 9th edition of Smackdown]], Henry sucker-punched The Big Show, which prompted Show to re-injured Henry's ankle. At TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs, Henry lost the World Heavyweight Championship to Big Show in a chairs match. After the match, Henry knocked Big Show out, resulting in Daniel Bryan cashing in his Money in the Bank to win his first World Heavyweight Championship. On the [[January 20, 2012 Smackdown results|January 20 episode of SmackDown]], Bryan retained the championship against Henry in a Lumberjack match after Bryan provoked the lumberjacks to come in and attack them to cause a no contest. At the 2012 Royal Rumble event, Henry faced Bryan and Show in a Triple Threat steel cage match for the World Heavyweight Championship; Bryan escaped the cage to retain the title. On the [[February 3, 2012 Smackdown results|February 3 episode of SmackDown]], Henry was suspended indefinitely (in storyline) by SmackDown General Manager Theodore Long, after Henry physically accosted Long as he demanded a one-on-one rematch that night with Bryan. In reality, Henry had suffered a hyper-extended knee the previous week. Henry returned to in-ring action on the [[February 20, 2012 Monday Night RAW results|February 20 episode of Raw]], losing to Sheamus. On the April 2nd and 9th episodes of Raw, Henry faced CM Punk for the WWE Championship which he won by count-out and disqualification; as a result, Punk retained his title. On the [[April 16, 2012 Monday Night RAW results|April 16 episode of Raw]], Punk defeated Henry in a no-disqualification, no count-out match to retain the WWE Championship. On [[May 14, 2012 Monday Night RAW results|May 14 edition of Raw]], Henry announced he was going under a career-threatening surgery for an injury. After a nine-month absence, Henry made his return on the [[February 4, 2013 Monday Night RAW results|February 4, 2013 episode of Raw]], brutally attacking Daniel Bryan, Rey Mysterio and Sin Cara. Four days later on SmackDown, Henry defeated Randy Orton to earn a spot in the number one contenders' Elimination Chamber match for the World Heavyweight Championship at Elimination Chamber. On February 17 at the Elimination Chamber 2013 pay-per-view, Henry eliminated Daniel Bryan and Kane before being eliminated by Randy Orton. After his elimination, Henry attacked the three remaining participants before being escorted out by WWE officials. Henry then began a feud with Ryback after several non-verbal confrontations led to them attacking Drew McIntyre with their finishers, attempting to one-up each other. On the [[March 15, 2013 Smackdown results|March 15th edition of SmackDown]], Henry was defeated by Ryback via disqualification, following interference from The Shield. Afterward, Henry delivered the World's Strongest Slam to Ryback three times in a row. On April 7 at WrestleMania 29, Henry defeated Ryback in a singles match. Later that month, Henry reignited a feud with Sheamus by repeatedly attacking Sheamus backstage. Henry and Sheamus then challenged each other in tests of strength, but with Sheamus unable to best Henry, he resorted to attacking Henry with Brogue Kicks. After Sheamus (during his match) Brogue Kicked Henry (who was on commentary), Henry snapped and brutally whipped Sheamus with a belt. This led to a strap match on May 19 at Extreme Rules, where Sheamus emerged victorious. After the loss to Sheamus, Henry declared that he was "going home". Various feuds and face turn (2013–2014) After being absent from television due to injuries, Henry used social media to tease his retirement. On the [[June 17, 2013 Monday Night RAW results|June 17th episode of Raw]], Henry returned, interrupting WWE Champion John Cena and delivering an emotional retirement speech, which was revealed as a ruse when Henry gave Cena a World's Strongest Slam after concluding his speech. The segment was highly praised by fans and critics. With Henry stating his intent to challenge for the "only title he's never held", he was granted a WWE Championship match against Cena at Money in the Bank. On July 14 at the pay-per-view, Henry failed in his title challenge against Cena after submitting to the STF. The following night on Raw, Henry cut a promo to congratulate Cena on his win and asked for a rematch for SummerSlam, but was ultimately attacked by The Shield, turning face in the process. Henry continued his face turn the following week, by confronting The Shield and teaming together with The Usos to fend them off. Henry and the Usos would go on to lose to The Shield in two six-man tag team matches, the first on the July 29 edition of Raw, and the second on the [[August 7, 2013 Main Event results|August 7th edition of Main Event]]. On the [[August 12, 2013 Monday Night RAW results|August 12 edition of Raw]], Henry competed in a twenty-man number one contender battle royal for the United States Championship, but was the last man eliminated by Rob Van Dam. After the match, Henry and Van Dam were confronted by The Shield, before the returning Big Show came to their aid. On [[August 16, 2013 Smackdown results|August 16 episode of SmackDown]], Henry, Show, and Van Dam defeated the Shield in a six-man tag team match. After a suspected hamstring injury, Henry fortunately was soon cleared to compete. Henry, however, took time off. He returned to in-ring action at Survivor Series in November to answer Ryback's open challenge. Henry defeated Ryback after nailing the World's Strongest Slam. On the [[November 25, 2013 Monday Night RAW results|November 25th edition of Raw]] Henry and Big E. Langston was in a tag team match against Ryback and Curtis Axel, and both got the victory. Henry tried to confront Brock Lesnar during separate encounters after Lesnar's return, resulting in Henry receiving an F5 the first time and then Lesnar injured Henry's arm after getting it in a Kimura lock hold, causing Henry to wail in pain and be absent. He returned on 10 February and answered Dean Ambrose's open challenge for the WWE United States Championship, but never won the title due to interference by The Shield cohorts. In March, Henry would suffer another attack from Lesnar, this time resulting in Henry receiving an F-5 through the announcing table. Henry soon recovered and had another match with Ambrose for the U.S. title, but he lost again. Henry disappeared from TV for a while after this. On August 4 he returned to TV and defeated Damien Sandow after a few months absence. On the August 15 edition of Smackdown, Henry defeated Luke Harper by Disqualification which led to a tag match with Henry and Big Show vs. The Wyatts where Henry pinned Erick Rowan. On August 18 he would come out to confront Rusev and proceed to get the best of the "Bulgarian Brute" hitting the World's Strongest Slam and leaving the Rusev laid out. At Night of Champions, Henry lost to Rusev via submission. On the following night on Raw, Henry lost to Rusev again by knockout via submission. Heel turn and feud with Big Show (2014) On the [[October 27, 2014 Monday Night RAW results|October 27 episode of Raw]], Henry turned heel when he attacked Big Show during a tag team match. On the [[November 3, 2014 Monday Night RAW results|November 3 Raw]], he lost to Big Show via disqualification and slammed Big Show onto the steel steps. On the [[November 10, 2014 Monday Night RAW results|November 10 Raw]], he joined The Authority's team to face John Cena's team at Survivor Series. On November 23 at Survivor Series, Henry was the first to be eliminated from Team Authority 50 seconds into the match after being knocked out by The Big Show. The [[November 24, 2014 Monday Night RAW results|next night on RAW]], Henry was defeated by Ryback via Meat Hook Clothesline in a one-sided beatdown match. Later Career (2015-2017) On an episode of Smackdown in 2015, Henry accused Roman Reigns of not having what it takes to defeat Brock Lesnar. Once he pushed Reigns too far, he was attacked by Reigns. Henry was later interviewed backstage where he retracted everything he said about Roman Reigns, thus turning face. He would replace an injured Rusev in the Intercontinental Championship Elimination Chamber, where his pod would break open and in turn having him enter the match early, which has become one of the most infamous botches for Henry not knowing what to do during that time. He would later be eliminated by Sheamus. In the 2016 WWE Draft Henry would be drafted to RAW where he would be unsuccessful in a United States Championship match against Rusev. He would team with the Golden Truth against Titus O'Neil and The Shining Stars where Henry's team would come out victorious In 2017 Henry returned in the Royal Rumble in the #6 position, but would quickly be eliminated by Braun Strowman Retirement and Producer (2018-Present) On the 25th anniversary of RAW, Henry would make one last televised appearance, reuniting with former partner The Godfather. Henry would slowly shift from a wrestler to a backstage producer. Later it would be announced that Henry would be inducted into the 2018 WWE Hall of Fame by his good friend Big Show, thus confirming that he was retired. Henry's final match would be in Saudi Arabia in the Greatest Royal Rumble eliminating 3 people, including Sumo legend Hiroki Sumi. Since then he has continued working as a producer teaching new blood about respect in the locker room among other things. In wrestling *'Finishing moves' **''World's Strongest Slam'' (High-angle falling powerslam) **''World's Strongest Splash'' (Running Splash) **Torture Rack Backbreaker *'Signature moves' **Body avalanche **Military press slam **Scoop Powerslam **Running Cross Body **Headbutt **Bearhug **Headbutting an Opponent while Crawling **Leapfrog Body Guillotine **Military Press Drop **Nerve Hold **Running Powerslam ** Sidewalk Slam *'Managers' **Mae Young **Ivory **Theodore Long **Daivari **Melina **Matt Striker **Tony Atlas *'Nicknames' **'"The World's Strongest Man"' **"The King of the Jungle" **"The Texas Silverback" **"Sexual Chocalate" **"The Primetime Primate" - Used while teaming with Montel Vontavious Porter *'Entrance themes' **"Power" by Jim Johnston (WWF; 1998–1999) **"Sexual Chocolate" performed by Stevan Swann and composed by Jim Johnston (WWF/WWE; 1999–2000; 2010) **'"Some Bodies Gonna Get It"' by Three 6 Mafia (WWE; 2006–present) Championships and accomplishments Powerlifting *All-time world former raw (unequipped) squat world record holder (430 Kilograms) Professional wrestling *'Cauliflower Alley Club' **Iron Mike Mazurki Award (2019) *'Pro Wrestling Illustrated' **PWI ranked him #41 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2006 **PWI ranked him #197 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2016 *'World Wrestling Federation / World Wrestling Entertainment' **ECW Championship (1 time) **World Heavyweight Championship (1 time) **WWF European Championship (1 time) ** Slammy Award for "Holy $#!+ Move of the Year" (2011) Big Show and Mark Henry implode the ring after Henry superplexed him at Vengeance ** Slammy Award for Feat of Strength of the Year (2013) Pulling two trucks with his bare hand ** Slammy Award for Match of the Year (2014) - Team Cena vs. Team Authority at Survivor Series **WWE Hall of Fame (Class of 2018) Strongman athletics *'Arnold Classic' **Arnold Classic Strongest Man (2002) Weightlifting *Olympic Games **Olympic Games team member (1992, 1996) *'Pan American Games' **Pan American Games Silver Medalist (1995) *Senior American record holder in Snatch, Clean and jerk, and Total (1993–1997) *Senior National Championship (1993, 1994, 1996) See also *Mark Henry's event history External links * WWE.com Profile * Mark Henry profile at CAGEMATCH.net * Profile Category:American wrestlers Category:Ohio Valley Wrestling alumni Category:World Wrestling Entertainment current roster Category:Ultimate Pro Wrestling alumni Category:Deep South Wrestling alumni Category:1971 births Category:ECW World Heavyweight Champions Category:1996 debuts Category:WWE World Heavyweight Champions Category:WWE European Champions Category:Texas wrestlers Category:Elimination Chamber Match alumni Category:African American wrestlers Category:Olympic athletes Category:Heartland Wrestling Association alumni Category:IWA Puerto Rico alumni Category:Power Pro Wrestling alumni Category:United States Wrestling Association alumni Category:2017 retirements Category:Living people Category:Male wrestlers Category:Powerlifters Category:WWE Hall of Fame inductees Category:WWE Hall of Fame